Essence of life [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. William D. Clarke, AMNH curator of invertebrates, reviews the nature and range of life on earth, illustrating how all normal forms of life have five basic properties: responsiveness, the ability to reproduce, growth, metabolism, and movement.Film Collection no. 99

African safari [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Harold E. Anthony, chairman and curator of the museum's Department of Mammals, and Charles Collingwood, narrator, take television viewers on a safari to Africa in this broadcast. Anthony, a noted animal collector, stresses the importance of safari techniques that bring back live animals for scientific study.Film Collection no. 100

Mohammedanism [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Walter Ashlin Fairservis, AMNH anthropologist, examines Mohammedanism. The first in a three-part series on Oriental religions, this program traces the beginnings of Mohammedanism to about 600 A.D., when Mohammed preached.Film Collection no. 101

Silkworms ; Constellations [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: Silkworms. The complete cycle of the silkworm, from birth to death, is discussed by Mont Adelbert Cazier, chairman of the AMNH Department of Insects and Spiders, who also narrates the Italian documentary that shows the silk-spinning process. SEGMENT 2: Constellations. Catharine E. Barry, assistant astronomer at the American MuseumHayden Planetarium, presents the second segment, which is primarily geared for young children. She speaks about the mythology of the heavens, recounting the history of the constellation Orion, the Japanese tales of the stars Alta and Vegair, and the Indian legend of the Corona Borealis.Film Collection no. 102

Egypt ; Fish genetics ; Geology of the far north [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: Egypt. In a remote broadcast from the Brooklyn Museum, the first segment attempts to reconstruct life in Egypt during the time of the Pharoahs, as seen through Egyptian art. SEGMENT 2: Fish Genetics. The second segment is concerned with fish genetic experiments performed in conjunction with the American Cancer Society to determine if there is a hereditary factor in cancer. SEGMENT 3: Geology of the Far North. Father Bernard Hubbard, dean of science at the University of Santa Clara, California, discusses his adventures in Alaska as the glacier priest for the past 27 years.Film Collection no. 103

Hinduism [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The second segment in a three-part series on religion discusses Hinduism. The three stages of life of the average Hindu are examined: confirmation and preparation; discharge obligations; and in old age renouncing life and attempting to reach Brahman and rebirth.Film Collection no. 105

After hours at the Museum ; Red deer [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: After Hours at the Museum. The first segment is a previously shown short film entitled After Hours at the Museum. The previous showing was on May 16, 1954. SEGMENT 2: Red Deer. Lee Crandall, curator emeritus for the Department of Birds, New York Zoological Society, is the guest at a remote broadcast from the Bronx Zoo (i.e. New York Zoological Park). The subject of the program is the differences between the lives of red deer in captivity and in the wild.Film Collection no. 107

Quetzalcoatl [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Broadcast from the museum's Hall of Mexico and Central America, the program presents an in-depth examination of the influence Quetzalcoatl (Serpent God of the Aztecs) had on four major cultures.Film Collection no. 108

Adventure [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The topic of discussion for this broadcast is the concept of adventure. After a brief examination of the various meanings of the word, three feature films are shown to illustrate different types of adventure.Film Collection no. 109

Family of man [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The "Family of Man" exhibition of photographs at the Museum of Modern Art is discussed by Edward Steichen, noted photographer and curator at the Museum of Modern Art, and guests Eleanor Roosevelt, Carl Sandburg, and Harry L. Shapiro, AMNH Department of Anthropology.Film Collection no. 110

Bees [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Charles Collingwood examines the world of bees in this segment. Along with live bees brought into the studio, Collingwood walks the viewers through a beehive.Film Collection no. 111

Family of man [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. This broadcast on the "Family of Man" exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art was originally shown on June 19, 1955. The show won an award at the Venice Film Festival and was exhibited at the Edinburgh Film Festival. It is repeated here in its entirety.Film Collection no. 113

Oil digging in Purcell, Oklahoma [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Robert Northshield, producer of the Adventure series, joins engineers of the Carter Oil Company (a subsidiary of Standard Oil of New Jersey) in staking out a claim-site and starting drilling in Purcell, Oklahoma.Film Collection no. 114

Planets ; Oil well #2 [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: Planets. Joseph M. Chamberlain, chief astronomer at the AMNH-Hayden Planetarium, is interviewed about projected space travel and man's concept of the universe. A discussion follows, about what planets really look like and whether any of them are capable of supporting life. SEGMENT 2: Oil Well #2. At the end of the program, a progress report is given on the oil well construction at Purcell, Oklahoma. Robert Northshield, in the field, shows films of the erection of the derrick that week.Film Collection no. 115

Way of the Navajo [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The Way of the Navajo, first broadcast September 26, 1954, is shown again on this date after winning Adventure the George Foster Peabody Award. This film was also selected to be shown at the International Film Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland.Film Collection no. 116

The body ; Oil well #3 [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: The Body. The first segment of this broadcast illustrates how the body works by means of a large machine full of tracks and a small train moving over the human body to portray various systems. SEGMENT 2: Oil Well #3. Robert Northshield once again discusses the latest progress on the Adventure oil well in Purcell, Oklahoma.Film Collection no. 117

Sea of darkness ; Oil well #4 [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: Albert E. Parr, Director of the AMNH and a marine biologist, is interviewed by Charles Collingwood on the subject of the Atlantic Ocean. The discussion includes an analysis of the Atlantic from Labrador to Puerto Rico, and legends about the ocean. SEGMENT 2: Oil Well #4. This segment presents an update on the Adventure oil well in Purcell, Oklahoma. Robert Northshield discusses the progress of the drilling.Film Collection no. 118

Christmas around the world ; Oil well #5 [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1955; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. SEGMENT 1: Christmas Around the World. In a remote broadcast from a Benedictine convent in Bethlehem, Connecticut, a valuable collection of miniature creche figures, fifteenth century Italian wood carvings are seen. SEGMENT 2: Oil Well #5. The second segment is the fifth and last report on the oil well in Purcell, Oklahoma. Robert Northshield is seen celebrating under a gushing oil well.Film Collection no. 119

Seals and porpoises [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Another program in a series on "The Waters of the World," this remote broadcast discusses seals, porpoises, and dolphins from the Great Aquarium and Seal Pond at Marineland in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Ken Norris, curator of Marineland, is interviewed by Charles Collingwood.Film Collection no. 120

Belgian Congo's Hamba tribe [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The noted anthropologist Luc de Heusch recorded various rites of the Hamba tribe of the Belgian Congo (now Zaire) for this program. Celebration of the Hamba, the English title of de Heusch's film, documents the ritual of the "leopardmen," the initiation of young men into the ranks of the warriors, some festivals, and the ceremony of a native divorce.Film Collection no. 121

Gorillas and apes [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The program on gorillas and other apes begins with a film entitled Gorilla Bill, which is about Bill Said's methods of capturing a gorilla (shown previously on March 27, 1955). After this film material is presented, a remote broadcast from the Bronx Zoo (i.e. New York Zoological Park) features Charles Collingwood interviewing Richard Mandel, curator of mammals, about the lives of gorillas and other apes in the wild and in captivity.Film Collection no. 122

Voodoo [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The origin and history of voodoo is the topic of discussion for this broadcast. Illustrated through a performance by the Haitian dancer Jean Lon Destine and his dance group with drums and singing dancers, the discussion explores the various meanings of voodoo as a religion and ritual.Film Collection no. 123

Life of the penguin [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Broadcasting from the penguin section of the Bronx Zoo (i.e. New York Zoological Park), Charles Collingwood discusses penguins with William J. L. Sladen of the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey Department. Dean Amadon, AMNH ornithologist, was a consultant for the program.Film Collection no. 124

Headhunters of South America [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Edward Moffatt Weyer, editor of Natural History magazine and an anthropologist, and Harry Tschopik, AMNH ethnologist, are guest anthropologists on this broadcast about two groups of Indians. The Chavante (i.e. Shavante) and Jivaro Indians, who live in the Amazon region of South America, have been the subject of some scrutiny following the recent massacre of five American missionaries by the Auca Indians in Ecuador.Film Collection no. 125

Buddhism [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The setting for this broadcast is a Buddhist temple in Farmingdale, New Jersey, in a community where 160 Tibetan political and religious refugees have settled. Buddhist rituals, customs, and special New Year's day celebrations are observed as the community celebrates its freedom.Film Collection no. 126

Catalina under the sea [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. In a live underwater broadcast, the first ever produced, Charles Collingwood puts on his diving suit and dives with Ken Norris, oceanographer at Marineland in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. They discuss plants, such as a kelp forest, and much of the examination is centered on the type of underwater photographic equipment used in this unique broadcast.Film Collection no. 127

Hook [videorecording] : a hawk's life.Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Ernest Thomas Gilliard, an ornithologist at the AMNH, is introduced on this broadcast as a guest expert on the life cycle of the hawk.Film Collection no. 131

Alexander the Great [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The 1956 Hollywood production of Alexander the Great provides the impetus for this broadcast, which compares the historical accuracy of the movie with actual relics from the fourth century B.C., in the collections of the AMNH.Film Collection no. 132

Big cats [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Big Cats is the title of this program broadcast live from the Bronx Zoo (i.e. New York Zoological Park). Richard Mandel, the mammal curator at the zoo, is the guest. The program shows viewers how tigers, jaguars and leopards live in captivity.Film Collection no. 133

Imprinting period [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Scientific experimentation with the imprinting period, the phase of an animal's life when its mind is most open to stimuli, is the topic of discussion.Film Collection no. 134

Evolution of the horse [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. This broadcast from the Aqueduct Racetrack features horse trainer Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons, trainer of the thoroughbred Nashua. The discussion focuses on the characteristics of a fine horse and on the evolution of the horse.Film Collection no. 135

Deafness [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Charles Collingwood explores the world of deafness in this program. In conjunction with a trained audiologist from the New York Lexington School for the Deaf, an electrical set-up enables Collingwood's voice to be filtered out and demonstrates the tones that are lost when deafness begins.Film Collection no. 136

Snake cults [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. This program is a repeat of the broadcast from March 4, 1956 on snake cults and worship of snakes.Film Collection no. 138

Pompeii [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. Walter Ashlin Fairservis, AMNH archaeologist, served as consultant for this broadcast on Pompeii, the ancient Roman city buried for seventeen centuries by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. The entire city of Pompeii is reproduced for this program in a realistic model.Film Collection no. 139

African villages and music [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. This segment, hosted by Charles Collingwood, discusses the use of music in African villages, especially music samples of the Babembe (i.e. Bembe) found in the Middle Congo of French Equatorial Africa (now Congo).Film Collection no. 140

The Bayeux tapestry [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History : CBS, 1956; 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. The Bayeaux Tapestry is the subject of this broadcast which traces the history of Hastings back to the Norman victory over the Anglo-Saxons in 1066 A.D. in what is believed to be the formation of the English-speaking people.Film Collection no. 142

Professor Henry Fairfield Osborn, AMNH President (1908-1933) and noted paleontologist, believed that central Asia was the birthplace of man. When the young curator of mammals, Roy Chapman Andrews, started talking about exploring central Asia he was encouraged by Osborn. Andrews personally raised funds and organized an expedition that he called the Third Asiatic Expedition (TAE), 1921-1930, since he had already reconnoitered Mongolia in 1919, and in 1916-1917 the AMNH had completed the First Zoological Expedition. Eventually the entire series of expeditions became known as the Central Asiatic Expeditions.

Asia magazine, co-sponsor of the TAE, hired cinematographer James Barnes Shackelford, an expert in the use of the Akeley camera (a special camera equipped with a gyro head, a long-focus lens, and a coupled viewfinder, which could be set up in less than a minute and have its film changed in thirty seconds) to film the 1922, 1925, and 1928 expeditions. The resulting films and photographs are some of the most comprehensive and most professional, making it the best-documented expedition in the collection. In the 1930s the raw footage was edited into short thematic films titled and captioned for use in lectures. No comprehensive visual record exists. The TAE received front-page attention as it traveled throughout China and Mongolia. Although the expedition failed to find evidence that Central Asia was the birthplace of man, it is remembered for the discovery of dinosaur eggs in the Gobe Desert, thus proving that dinosaurs were reptiles not mammals.

The Central Asiatic Expeditions [videorecording] : fauna. *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History 1921-1930; 1 videocassette (17 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Third Asiatic Expedition to China and Mongolia, 1921-1930. The expedition collected zoological specimens throughout Mongolia, but the main collecting was done in the Gobi Desert. This film shows some of the animals that were collected for scientific purposes, as well as those kept as pets.Film Collection no. 146

The Central Asiatic Expeditions [videorecording] : Peking. *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1922-1928; 1 videocassette (7 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Third Asiatic Expedition to China and Mongolia, 1921-1930. Film brought from the U.S. was intended for recording the expedition, but some precious film was used to photograph Peking (now Beijing), the site of the expedition's headquarters.Film Collection no. 150

Frontiers of a forbidden land [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1916-1917; 1 videocassette (36 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH First Asiatic Zoological Expedition to Yunnan and Fukien, China, 1916-1917. This is the record of the AMNH First Asiatic Zoological Expedition to eastern and southwestern China (Fukien and Yunnan provinces), the purpose of which was to collect zoological specimens and visual ethnographic records.Film Collection no. 151

Children of Africa [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1937; 1 videocassette (10 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Martin Johnson African Expedition, 1924-1928. Children of Africa is comprised of outtakes from a Martin and Osa Johnson film made during the AMNH Martin Johnson African Expeditions, 1924-1928.Film Collection no. 152

Children of Asia [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1937; 1 videocassette (12 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Edited from footage taken during the AMNH Faunthorpe-Vernay Indian Expedition to India, Nepal, and Burma, 1922-1923, the AMNH First Asiatic Zoological Expedition to Yunnan, China, 1916-1917, and the AMNH Third Asiatic Expedition to China and Mongolia, 1921-1930.Film Collection no. 153

Children of Mexico [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1940; 1 videocassette (11 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Educational Expedition to Mexico, 1940. Grace Fisher Ramsey of the AMNH Department of Education made a series of short films in 1940, during the Educational Expedition to Mexico. This particular film is an introduction to the children of Mexico.Film Collection no. 154

Congo [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1940; 1 videocassette (5 min.) : sound, b&w ; 3/4 in. This footage is comprised of outtakes of the Warner Brothers feature film The Congo but there is no information on it in the Warners' archives.Film Collection no. 156

Craftsmen of Mexico [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1940; 1 videocassette (16 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Educational Expedition to Mexico, 1940. This film by Grace Fisher Ramsey, associate curator of the AMNH Department of Education, opens in color with images of Otomi women near Popocatapetl making twine from maguey fibers; they perform this task while walking along the road.Film Collection no. 158

Charles Templeton Crocker (1885-1948) was born in San Francisco to a family renowned for its contribution to the first transcontinental railroad, but exploration rather than the Southern Pacific Railroad Company fired his imagination and many museums profited by his sense of adventure and generosity. He led several research expeditions to the South Pacific in the 1930s, two of them for the AMNH. The expeditions traveled on board his beautiful yacht, the Zaca. In 1933, Harper Brothers published his book, The Cruise of the Zaca. People and Dances of Oceania is the film record of this trip.

The Templeton Crocker Expedition [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1933; 1 videocassette (110 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the Templeton Crocker Expedition to the Solomon Islands, 1933. The objective of the Templeton Crocker Expedition, led by Crocker, was to conduct a preliminary medical, ethnological and natural history survey of the Solomon Islands. This film consists predominantly of ethnographic footage depicting the native clothing, trade, rituals and everyday activities on the various islands.Film Collection no. 161

Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1952; 1 videocassette (22 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. This film records a big game fishing trip in the converging waters of the mineral-rich Ecuadorian and Humboldt currents off the coast of Peru.Film Collection no. 162

Charles Suydam Cutting is most celebrated as the first westerner to enter the forbidden city of Lhasa in Tibet. After years of negotiations and presents to the Dalai Lama, his perseverance was rewarded by an invitation to the holy city.

Educated as an engineer he abandoned his profession for adventure and exploration. Cutting’s special interest in ethnology is reflected in his expedition films. He collected for the Field Museum of Natural History, the Bombay Natural History Society, botanical gardens in the United States and England, and the AMNH. He was a member of the royal Geographical Society and the Royal Central Asian Society, and a trustee of both the AMNH and the New York Zoological Society.

Cutting wrote about his expeditions and friends, including Kermit and Theodore Roosevelt Jr., in his book, The Fire Ox and Other Years. The year of the fire ox, according to the Chinese lunar calendar is 1937, when Cutting made his return visit to the forbidden cities of Tibet with his wife, Helen McMahon Cutting. He was a national champion in court tennis, an avocation he took as seriously as exploration.

China and Tibet [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1929; 1 videocassette (15 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during a Field Museum of Natural History expedition to China, Tibet, and Vietnam, 1929. The film is primarily a record of the people, many of whom are not identified, they encountered through the Szechwan Province and in Tibet.Film Collection no. 164

Nyimsao and Kheseto [videorecording] : a tale of the Naga Hills. *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1930; 1 videocassette (78 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Charles Suydam Cutting made this film while traveling through the Naga Hills of Assam in northeast India with a punitive expedition conducted by the British Naga district commissioner to curtail headhunting. Ethnographic footage of the Naga peoples is overlaid on a light fictional story about two men, Nyimsao and Kheseto.Film Collection no. 165

To Lhasa and Shigatse [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1935; 1 videocassette (73 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the Vernay-Cutting Expedition to Tibet, 1935. The Vernay-Cutting expedition to Tibet was co-led by Charles Suydam Cutting and Arthur Stannard Vernay, another AMNH trustee. Its purpose was to collect ethnological objects for the AMNH and botanical specimens for the Kew Gardens in England.Film Collection no. 166

The Vernay-Cutting Expedition to Burma [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1938; 1 videocassette (25 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during the Vernay-Cutting Expedition to Burma, 1938. The Vernay-Cutting Expedition to Burma was organized for the purpose of collecting zoological and botanical specimens for the AMNH, the New York Botanical Garden, the Kensington Museum of London (probably the British Museum of Natural History), Kew Gardens, and the Bombay Natural History Society.Film Collection no. 167

Danses de Dogons, de Sanga, et de Bandiagara [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, [192- ]1930; 1 videocassette (4 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Given to the museum by the estate of Anne Morgan, J. P. Morgan's youngest child, this is probably one of several French Government films she owned, as she had worked extensively with the French Government during World War I. The dances of the Dogon escarpments of Sanga and Bandiagara in Mali are the focus of this film.Film Collection no. 168

Danses des Cambodgiennes [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1930?; 1 videocassette (6 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. This film was given to the AMNH by the estate of Anne Morgan, J. P. Morgan's youngest child. This is probably one of several French Government films which she owned. In this film, the Royal Cambodian Ballet performs a traditional dance on an elaborate covered patio.Film Collection no. 169

The Day Roraima Expedition [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1927; 1 videocassette (67 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Day Roraima Expedition to Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana, 1927. George Henry Hamilton Tate, AMNH associate in mammalogy, his brother Geoffrey Tate, and T. Donald Carter, AMNH assistant curator of mammalogy, headed this expedition, the object of which was to bring a list of the region's flora and fauna as near to completion as possible.Film Collection no. 170

A day with John Burroughs [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1919; 1 videocassette (9 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. John Burroughs (1837-1921), author and naturalist, is filmed going about his daily routine at his home, Woodchuck Lodge, in the Catskill Mountains. This film is unique for the time as it was filmed in color; it is the earliest color film in the collection.Film Collection no. 171---For more information about John Burroughs, see the site for the John Burroughs Association.

Dead birds [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1962; 1 videocassette (84 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during the Harvard-Peabody New Guinea Expedition to the Baliem Valley of Dutch New Guinea (now Irian Jaya), 1961. This film chronicles the two seasons the expedition spent with the Dugum Dani (i.e. Dani) in the Kurelu area of the Baliem Valley, Dutch New Guinea (now Irian Jaya, Indonesia).Film Collection no. 172

Digging fossils in South Dakota [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1941; 1 videocassette (6 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during AMNH excavations in the Big Badlands of South Dakota, 1941. This film made by Charles Coles, AMNH photographer, records the paleontological work done in the Badlands of South Dakota by AMNH paleontologists Edwin H. Colbert, Albert Thomson, and Walter Granger.Film Collection no. 173

DNA and living cells [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1964; 1 videocassette (7 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. The first part of DNA and Living Cells discusses, through animated modules, how DNA and RNA direct the synthesis of certain proteins that are vital for proper cell function.Film Collection no. 174

Dogon mask [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1974?; 1 videocassette (15 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. This film is part of the travelling exhibition entitled "Contemporary African Arts," which was mounted by the Field Museum of Natural History of Chicago and shown at the AMNH in 1974. A group of Dogons dance against the background formed by the wattle-and-daub pueblo-style buildings of their village in Mali.Film Collection no. 175

W. Gurnee Dyer Collection (1963-1973): Film Collection nos. 176-184

Walter Gurnee Dyer, vice-president of the AMNH from 1968 until his death in 1974, was an investment banker with an avid interest in education. The Dyer film collection, motivated by his desire to educate, is a photographic record of Dyer’s travel experiences in Africa, Central America and Asia, with his wife, Betty, who recorded the local music heard in some of these films. During their travels, the Dyers collected many artifacts of daily life. The films often record how these items were used, and many of these objects are now on display in AMNH’s Hall of Man in Africa.

In the shadow of the Ruwenzori and the Ituri forest [videorecording.] *[Dyer’s Congo- note in book]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1972; 1 videocassette (52 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. While on vacation in Uganda and Zaire, Walter Gurnee and Betty Dyer filmed their trip and made sound recordings of the people and places they encountered. Their trip took them to Queen Elizabeth National Park, Lake Kivu, the Semliki River, the Semliki flats and the Ituri Forest.Film Collection no. 181

India [videorecording] : Bombay to Cape Comorin. *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1966; 1 videocassette (50 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. The Dyers made this film while traveling through India. It opens with footage of Bombay Harbor; the fishermen of the seacoast town of Manori are then observed at work, and the town itself is explored through street scenes and a shot of the Tomb of Rabia-ud-Daurani, which closely resembles the Taj Mahal.Film Collection no. 182

A little journey through Iran [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1971; 1 videocassette (34 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. A Little Journey through Iran is a record of the Dyers' travels through that country. Included in the film are magnificent shots of the Tomb of Cyrus the Great at Pasargadae, and the tombs of the other Achaemeni kings, Darius I, Darius II and Xerxes, and the nearby ruins of Persepolis.Film Collection no. 183

East Africa [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1923?; 1 videocassette (14 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. This film is comprised of bits and pieces that are probably outtakes of Alfred J. Klein's Equatorial Africa: Roosevelt's Hunting Grounds, made in 1923.Film Collection no. 185

The Ellsworth Antarctic Expedition [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1933-1934; 1 videocassette (93 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Filmed during two Ellsworth Antarctic expeditions, 1933 and 1934. Lincoln Ellsworth, AMNH trustee, made two unsuccessful attempts to cross Antarctica by plane in 1933 and 1934 before succeeding finally in 1935. This footage, which unfortunately documents only his first two attempts, is nonetheless valuable for its views of the Antarctic landscape and the expedition itself, including Ellsworth's ship, the Wyatt Earp, and his plane, the Polar Star.Film Collection no. 186

Fishermen of Lake Patzcuaro [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1940; 1 videocassette (9 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH Educational Expedition to Mexico, 1940. In this film, made by Grace Fisher Ramsey of the Museum's Department of Education, the Tarasco Indians weave nets by their homes, near Lake Patzcuaro, Mexico.Film Collection no. 187

The Gilliard Sepik Expedition [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1953-1954; 1 videocassette (57 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during the AMNH-National Geographic Society Gilliard Sepik Expedition to Papua New Guinea, 1953-1954. Ernest Thomas Gilliard, AMNH ornithologist, and his wife Margaret went to Papua New Guinea in 1953- 1954 to study the birds of paradise of the Sepik River region and the headwaters in the valley between the Victor Emanuel and Hindenburg Mountain ranges.Film Collection no. 188

Glimpses of Hispaniola [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1929-1930; 1 videocassette (9 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. Santo Domingo, 1929-1930. The Angelo Heilprin Expedition to Santo Domingo was conducted under the auspices of the museum's Department of Herpetology and Experimental Biology. Its purpose was to collect and "fix" reptiles and amphibians in the field.Film Collection no. 189

Greenland musk oxen [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1934; 1 videocassette (13 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. This short film is all that remains of an expedition film called North Iceland and Northeast Greenland made by John K. Howard, an AMNH patron. In it is pictured the Isfjord, the Frand Joseph fjord, the Nordenskjold glacier, icebergs, waterfalls at Geology fjord, and of particular interest, the musk oxen at Eleonore Bay and Ymer Island.Film Collection no. 190

High Arctic [videorecording.]Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1962-1963; 1 videocassette (65 min.) : sound, color; 3/4 in. This film begins in Ottawa at the headquarters of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. While there, a Mountie officer convinces Lewis Cotlow, producer and director of this film, to make a motion picture about the Eskimos of the high Arctic. The film shows Cotlow and his film crew setting out on board an official Mountie airplane named the Otter.Film Collection no. 191

Hopi Indians of the Southwest [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1925; 1 videocassette (16 min.) : silent, b&w ; 3/4 in. The first part of this film is a study of weaving. Every action, from the carding of wool, through spinning it on a spindle, mounting yarn into warps, and weaving a sash using an upright loom are seen, all being performed by a Hopi man. This is followed by a ceremony leading up to a foot race by the priests as part of a maize celebration.Film Collection no. 192

How life begins [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1916?; 1 videocassette (36 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. George E. Stone, who had been an official U.S. Government photographer in France during World War I, collaborated with J. A. Long, assistant professor of embryology at the University of California, to make this early sex education film in an attempt to help combat venereal disease.Film Collection no. 193

Huaca Prieta [videorecording.] *Publisher New York : American Museum of Natural History, 1946-1947; 1 videocassette (33 min.) : silent, color; 3/4 in. Filmed during the Institute of Andean Research Viru Valley Project in Peru, 1946-1947. The Viru Valley Project was a series of archaeological excavations in the Andes sponsored by the Institute for Andean Research.Film Collection no. 194